updated 09:15 am EDT, Fri July 1, 2011

Adobe halves Premiere price for Final Cut users

Adobe leapt on Final Cut Pro X frustrations Friday with a new switcher promo. Anyone with a copy of Final Cut Pro or even Avid Media Composer can get a 50 percent discount on either Premiere Pro CS5.5 or CS5.5 Production Premium. The software house gave a knowing tweak to Apple that chastised it for dropping imports of the old version and traditional imports from tape.

"We're hearing from video professionals that they want pro level tools that address cutting edge work but also allow them to use legacy footage and workflows," the company's VP of pro video editing tools, Jim Guerard, said. "At Adobe we've been in the trenches with video pros for years."

The deal ends September 30 and requires buying the full, retail version of either app suite.

Adobe had already hinted it might try to court would-be FCPX buyers but is now seizing on the opportunity. While Apple's video app lead Randy Ubillos has said FCPX was just the start of a larger platform, its lack of vital video production features like multi-cam support and audio track export have left some companies literally unable to use the new version for their workflows. Apple hasn't signaled any intention to keep selling the old version and could leave many in its user base waiting several months or more before they can consider buying back in.